


The White Discord

by TalesOfOnyxBats



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/M, Mother Azula, Original Character(s), crossover sort of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-07
Updated: 2018-07-06
Packaged: 2019-06-06 13:35:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 12,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15195884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TalesOfOnyxBats/pseuds/TalesOfOnyxBats
Summary: A romance between Azula and OC(Male) that she could have met after escaping the forgetful valley after she ran off at the end of The Search Trilogy.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt from Xx-LoveNeverMore143-xX on tumblr

"Mommy." The three year old waddled across the yard and thrust herself into her mother's arms. "I found you 'thing!"

The child beamed up proudly at her mother and thrust a daffodil-lily in her face.

"It's beautiful dear." Her mother smiled and brushed her hand over the child's hair.

"Sooyoung, don't you have a performance to do?"

Sooyoung looked to her husband. "What time is it, Cheng?"

"A little past sundown."

The man was right; she had to be leaving soon. Sooyoung made a living through the preforming arts. She was a rather esteemed mater swordsman. People would travel from all over the lands just to see her work the art. Sooyoung's performances usually included her putting on an intricate masked costume of sorts and running through a series of sword and dagger tricks.

The non-bender was self-taught. Trained by years of simply observing someone who could be consider a weapons master. Truth be told, Sooyoung never anticipated being such a success. She especially never thought that she'd become a success so quickly. The girl had started preforming just five years prior—about a month or so after she'd arrived at the small town. And had gained a swell reputation after only a year or two.

She and Cheng had started out doing backyard performances for the sake of passing time. They then took to beachside performances where they would live off of tips alone. Soon after one of the upper class hired them to perform at a wedding. From there it was crowd after crowd.

And her crowds never left displeased—epically when Cheng would join her and add his firebending to the mix.

Sooyoung jumped to her feet. "I have to go baby." She ruffled the girl's hair. "We can finish this tomorrow."

"I was planning on taking her to see your performance tonight." Cheng decided.

"Sounds wonderful." Sooyoung smiled.

"Do be careful."

"Don't worry. Five years and I haven't even a scratch."

"I'm sure they'd understand if you wanted a break." Cheng pointed out.

Sooyoung had established herself a fairly simple life; residing in a small cottage located in one of Hira'a's jungles. They were a small family—her family—of three with a child on the way.

Sooyoung rolled her eyes and then ran them over her list of scheduled performances. "I only have three more scheduled. If it makes you feel better I'll do those three and take a break until the baby is born."

Cheng nodded.

"Good luck mommy!" The child was bouncing up and down on her little feet.

"Thank you, dear." Sooyoung leaned down and kissed the child's forehead. "I will see you after the show." She tapped the child's nose affectionately before raising back to her full height.

Off at the Fire Nation capital the Firelord found himself in the presence of the Avatar and his friends…

Not that old friends were bad company or anything.

Zuko offered the air nomad a cup of steaming tea. Aang gladly accepted.

"So what's on your mind Aang?"

"There's a group of people they call themselves the White Discord. We don't know much about them yet aside from the fact that they can…Spiritbend." Aang started.

"They can what?"

"I know this is going to sound crazy, but these people…the White Discord…they can find spirits and control them. I don't know how it works but I've seen them invite spirits into their bodies in a sort of joined power."

"Aang. That's…impossible?"

"I thought so too, until I saw it." Katara offered.

"What do they want?" Zuko continued.

"Like I said, we don't know much about them. We just know that they are crazy powerful. Katara seems to think that one of them is part spirit. I just know that they have been tracking me down." Aang frowned.

"If you're coming to me with this because I used to do that…"

"No Zuko. I'm coming to you because you're my friend and I want your help." Aang

"Plus, you're a pretty intimidating guy." Sokka shrugged.

"Aang, if what you're saying is true, I don't think I can help. Like you said, they are crazy powerful…the situation is crazy."

"So we'll just need something even crazier." Sokka suggested. "You know, like out crazy the crazy people!"

"And how are we supposed to do that?" Katara frowned. "Toph's the closest we have to crazy and she's still off working with the metalbenders."

Zuko pressed his lips together. "We find Azula."

"Oh, because that went over so well last time." Sokka frowned.

"And besides, where would we even start looking?" Katara asked.

"Exactly where we left off. In the Forgetful Valley." Zuko replied.

"We're not really going to look for her…are we?" Sokka whined. "She's terrifying."

"Are you more afraid of my little sister or of the White Discord?"

The group simultaneously looked one another and gave a unison. "The White Discord."

"So it's decided then? We're going to the Forgetful Valley again?" Aang asked.

"I guess so." Katara muttered.

"We should be there within two days now that we know how to get there." Zuko pointed out.

"Hey! Maybe we can catch the last show!" Sokka shouted.

"The last show?" Zuko asked.

"Sokka's been really into this weapon master lady. She's been preforming in Hira'a for quite some time." Katara explained. "He has about ten of their show posters and tries to mimics her sword tricks when he thinks I'm not looking."

"Sokka, we're trying to save the world…or at least Aang from some insane group. We don't have time to stop at popular tourist attractions." Zuko protested.

"Come on Zuko! Maybe she—Soo—has seen or heard something about Azula, she's lived in Hira'a for a while."

Zuko pinched the bridge of his nose. "Fine, but I swear if something happens…"

"It's fine Zuko, we always took silly detours when trying to beat your dad." Aang shrugged. "Catching Soo's last show of the season sounds like it would be fun."

"Alright. We'll head for the Forgetful Valley tomorrow. We can find a nice place to stay in Hira'a while we look for Azula. I'm sure my mom would be happy to let us stay in her old home." Zuko decided.

"And then we'll catch the show." Sokka added. "We'll find a nice place to stay and then catch the show."

"Yes Sokka, we will catch the show."

Aang nodded. "Sounds like a plan."


	2. Chapter 2

The dagger slid gracefully back into her grasp…sword not far behind. With an equally graceful bow, Sooyoung sheathed the sword.

Aang had never heard anyone clap as Sokka did at that moment.

"She's amazing!" Sokka declared.

"Isn't she?" Cheng smiled.

"Hey! You're Cheng, you're Sooyoung's husband!" Sokka shouted.

"Well thanks for reminding me." The man laughed.

"Is she your daughter?" Katara pointed.

"She is indeed. This is one of the first times she's gotten to see her mother preform, and she's already aspiring to be a sword's master."

"That's so cute." Katara said.

"So what brings the Fire Lord, and friends, back to Hira'a." Cheng asked.

"We're looking for my sister." Zuko replied. "The last time we saw her she was headed for the Forgetful Valley. Sokka wanted to catch your wife's show before we started looking and we all decided that we might as well find some place, in Hira'a, to stay while we're at it." He explained.

"I'm sure Soo wouldn't mind if you stayed with us." Cheng turned to his daughter. "How does getting to know the Avatar and the Fire Lord sound?"

The little girl leapt out of her father's arms. "Good."

"Where are you going?"

"Mommy!" The girl cried excitedly as she made her way through the crowd.

Sooyoung bent over and lifted the girl into her arms. The woman muttered a greeting Zuko couldn't quite hear before heading in their direction. At point Aang couldn't help but to compare Sokka to foamy mouth guy. He was flailing his arms, in joy, like there was no tomorrow.

Cheng opened his mouth to speak only to have Sokka cut him off. "That was an amazing show! When are you going to have another one!?"

Sooyoung rubbed the back of her head with her free hand. "Uh…not exactly sure yet. We're kind of just waiting now." She motioned to the slight baby bump.

"Oh. Well, I guess that makes sense." Sokka shrugged.

Katara rolled her eyes and groaned. "I'm sorry about my brother…congratulations."

Sooyoung was silent for a moment. "It's alright." The child in her arms cradled her head in the cook of the woman's neck. She ran her along the child's back in a soothing vertical motion.

Katara extended her arm. "Nice to meet you, I'm Katara."

Sooyoung returned the gesture, revealing a small marking on the inside of her wrist. "Sooyoung."

"Nice tattoo." Sokka complimented.

"Thank you, I got it to cover up a scar…cut myself during a performance." Sooyoung traced the tiny seashell.

"Ouch." Aang winced.

"I hope you don't mind that I invited the Fire Lord and his friends to stay with us." Cheng stated, bringing them back on track.

"I haven't even cleaned the house yet! If I knew…" Sooyoung started.

"It's okay trust me. I lived with Toph." Katara laughed.

"I just like it to look nice when we have guests." Sooyoung frowned.

"She's like this all the time." Cheng dared to whisper to Zuko.

"It must be a lady thing." Sokka added. "Katara's like that too."

"You're awfully quite Avatar." Sooyoung glanced at the boy.

"I don't know. I just don't have much to say. I kind of feel a little out of place here." Aang admitted. He shuffled his feet slightly.

"So they can stay with us right Soo?" Cheng asked.

"I suppose." Sooyoung replied. "You'll be a good girl, P'Li, and pick up your toys for mommy."

P'Li squirmed around again and nodded. "Mmhm mama." She eventually snuggled back into her prior position, cradled against the crook of Sooyoung's neck.

"This place is really cozy." Katara said upon stepping into the front yard.

The grass was well cut and soft. It was something Toph would have probably enjoyed feeling against her bare feet. Scattered in that soft grass were tiny flowers of all sorts. Sooyoung mentioned something about P'Li not letting her remove any of them. There was an odd mix of palm and pine trees providing shade to pretty much every inch of the yard. The large clusters of them created for a rather strange and otherworldly atmosphere. Aang could definitely feel just how close they were to the Forgetful Valley by looking at some of the other strange plants the yard had to offer.

But most of all he loved the little pond with a waterfall; it was crystal clear—pure in a way—and adorned with a bunch of lotus flowers and lily pads. Keeping the water from overflowing were a bunch of sizable rocks, some of which had doodles and handprints on them—one was signed by each of the family members. It was one of the sweetest things Aang had seen.

Looking into the water Aang could see a bunch of small shells and clams and a school of hippo-koi fish swimming around.

"Soo and I built this when we first moved here." Aang heard Cheng mention.

A tiny flutterbat whizzed past Aang's ear.

"It's kind of refreshing actually." Aang decided. "I was kind of expecting something huge and showy. Kind of a relief to see someone who doesn't wave their riches in everyone's faces." He inhaled deeply. The smell of some kind of flora biting his nose in a sweet sort of way.

"Yes well, I've tried that. It didn't work so well." Sooyoung noted with a lazy flick of her wrist. "I much prefer this." She lead them inside.

The interior was just as cozy looking as the exterior. A few toys lie scattered on the floor in each room. But it still looked tidy; each picture frame perfectly aligned, every pillow fluffed and straightened. Aang could feel a positive sort of energy in the room.

Maybe it was the beachside landscapes portrayed in the paintings on the wall. Or maybe it was the cheerful looking family portraits. Or possibly the way Sooyoung had placed a shelf beneath the portrait—as shelf that had a jar of shells and Krystal adorned rocks neatly organized atop its surface.

Sooyoung caught him staring. "P'Li found most of them…the shells I mean."

"The décor is really lovely." Katara remarked as she ran a hand over the seashell pattered pillows on the sofa.

"Thank you." Sooyoung smiled. "Speaking of décor…these toys aren't a part of it now are they?" Her soft smile remained as her eyes fell upon her daughter.

"No mommy." P'Li replied. "I pick 'em up now."

"That's a good girl." Sooyoung kissed the girl's forehead. "And for being a good girl, you can have two fruit tarts for dessert. But you can't let daddy know, he'll get jealous."

P'Li giggled. "'Kay mommy. I no tell him."

"We're still teaching her how to talk. She's a quick learner though." Sooyoung pointed out.

"How old is she?" Zuko asked.

"Three years old." Cheng replied.

"She is learning fast." Katara agreed.

"I should probably help her clean up." Sooyoung decided. "Dinner should be ready anytime."

"We're still having Loco Moco, right?" Cheng asked.

"Yes, dear." Sooyoung called from the other room.

"So how long have you been living in Hira'a." Zuko asked.

"I've been here my whole life. As far as I know, Soo has only been here for about five years." Cheng answered.

"That's not very long." Aang remarked.

"When did you get married?" Zuko asked. "If you don't mind me asking." He added.

"Only a few months after I found her." Cheng replied.

"Found her?" Sokka asked. "Exactly how did you meet your wife!?"

"At the time I was still living with my parents—I was nineteen—I was actually getting ready to buy a place of my own. At the time I lived on the outskirts of Hira'a. She just sort of came out of nowhere—one minute I'm alone in the jungle and the next…the next, Sooyoung was there." Cheng shared. "I never did find out how she got here...or where she came from initially."

"Did you ever ask her?" Katara questioned.

"She said she didn't remember." Cheng gave a sort of frown. He then shrugged. "We kind of just forgot about it. If we're meant to know, we'll find out. If not, well then, we just won't."

Zuko took a glance into the other room; P'Li had successfully managed to throw her mother off task. The two were not taking more toys out as opposed to actually putting them away. The two seemed so happy—laughing and smiling. The kind of relationship he would have loved to have with his father.

Cheng got up to check on the food. Upon finding that it was done, he called his family to the table.

P'Li looked around the room at all the toys still tossed about. "I still get two fruit tarts right mama?"

"Adorable." Katara giggled.

"We only have three chairs." Cheng pointed out. "So you guys can just take a seat on the couch."

"Sounds good." Aang agreed.

"One of you can take P'Li's chair." Sooyoung stated as the child crawled onto her mother's lap.

"I don't want to…" Katara started.

"It's alright, P'Li usually sits with Soo anyhow."

Zuko spared the pair another glance; they really did look so happy. The girl grinning up at her mother and grabbing at her hair. Sooyoung taking the child's hand and laughing back.

Cheng passed each of them a portion of the meal.

The conversations that night were light and joyful. They were about everything and anything really. From the time Sokka pretended to be Wang Fire to the time Zuko tried to be good. Cheng even talked about that one time when Sooyoung climbed one of the palm trees and couldn't get herself down. Of course she'd return with an equally embarrassing story about Cheng getting swarmed by pentapus. And then P'Li would add in some off topic made up tale.

All and all Zuko didn't think the trip was a waste of time…not at all.

Eventually Cheng lead everyone off, showing them the rooms they had available.

It was nightfall by this time and Sooyoung situated herself on the porch looking up at the sky. There was a cool gentle breeze that ruffled her hair lightly.

"I don't mean to interrupt. But we need to have a talk, Azula."


	3. Chapter 3

Azula turned rather abruptly. "How did you…"

"Your husband told me about how he met you." Zuko declared. "He said that you came out of nowhere…out of the jungle. When are you going to tell him that you remember exactly what happened and who you are?"

"I wasn't planning on it Zu-Zu." Azula shrugged. "Until you waltzed back in here, there was no chance of him ever finding out. He simply didn't need to know."

"You can't just…" Zuko's voice nearly doubled in volume.

Azula sighed. "If you wouldn't mind keeping it down…" She paused and drew in a breath. "You know, I didn't have to let you into my house. But I did. So do me a favor and skip the lecture."

"But don't you think that your family deserves to know the truth?"

"I think it's safer if they don't. Zu-Zu, I like it here. It's easy, it's quiet…simple. If everyone knew I was the princess, don't you think that all the simplicity would suddenly vanish?"

When Zuko didn't offer an immediate response she continued. "And besides…people like Sooyoung. I'm not stupid, I know damn well that people don't like Azula…"

"Exactly how long do you think you can keep pretending?" Zuko asked.

"I'm still a pretty good liar." Azula shrugged. "Our dear mother was able to keep her true identity under the rug for decades."

"That's because she actually thought she was someone else. And she—I don't know—had a completely new face!" Zuko threw his hands in the air. "Azula this is ridiculous."

"No. It's not." Azula hissed. "Instead of intruding on my family life, how about you go play house with my good friend Mai?"

"Azula!" Zuko shouted.

Azula visibly cringed. "Can you possibly be any louder?!" She hissed. "You know what? How about you just find your room, stay the night, and then be off to…wherever it is you were headed?"

"I was heading off to find you."

"Well great job, you did it. Want a prize?"

"I was hoping you could help us…"

"Zu-Zu. You didn't actually win anything."

"I'm not asking you to help us, I'm demanding you to help us." Zuko decided.

"And if I don't?" Azula circled him dangerously. "What? You'll banish me."

Zuko blinked once. "Yes. I will."

Azula laughed and let herself fall into one of the patio chairs, crossing one leg over the other. Her arms finding a place on the arm rests.

"Alright then…leave Hira'a."

Azula's nonchalant expression did not break. "Alright then Fire Lord." The last two words were spat like venom. "Do you job and tell my little girl she's never going to see her mother again. And don't neglect to tell her that you're the reason for it."

Zuko chewed at his lip. A bead of nervous sweat falling down his temple. He looked up at the light emitting from what he assumed was a happy P'Li's bedroom.

Her eyes bore into his. "Go on Zu-Zu. Leave my baby without a mother…just like father did to you."

Zuko let out a frustrated cry and slammed his hands against the banister.

"Go home Zu-Zu. I'll see you and your friends out first thing in the morning." Azula got up and gave her hair a lazy flick before heading for the door. She disappeared inside leaving her brother alone on the patio.

At this point his blood was boiling. She just had to bring up father. Even when he had power over her, he had no power over her, and it chewed away at him. At that moment he wanted more than anything to throw everything she'd ever done to him back at her. But he couldn't, not when it would hurt a child that did nothing to him.

Azula was right. If he banished her, he'd be no better than the man he fought so hard not to become.

But he still wanted to get her back somehow. For everything she'd ever done. And for not helping him with this…for not even letting him explain what he needed help with. He balled his fists and went back inside.

"What's going on Soo?" Was the first thing Zuko heard Cheng ask.

Zuko mustered up a bitter laugh.

"Soo?"

Azula looked to her husband and to Zuko, and then back at Cheng. "The Fire Lord and I were just…having a little…conversation."

"Is that what you want to call it?" Zuko scowled. He glared at Azula before turning to Cheng. Temper and stress getting the best of him. "While I'm struggling to re-build my nation…to fight the White Discord, your wife…she's just here having a grand time."

"You are the Fire Lord." Azula shrugged. "Not me."

Zuko brushed the comment aside. "You know she's lying to you right? Everything is one big lie! She knows exactly who she is and where she's from, she just didn't want to tell you."

Azula's perfectly maintained calm demeanor tumbled. Her face flushing an angry red.

"Soo, what is he talking about." Cheng seemed to go pale.

"Noth—"

"Ha! Her name isn't even Sooyoung!" Zuko blurted. "This whole thing. A happy family, a peaceful life…what a joke. She's got a lot to hide."

Cheng looked at Azula. "What is he talking about?" The question was more firm.

"Tell him or I will." Zuko decided proudly.

Azula's mind raced. So many scenarios coming to surface. None of them good. So many thoughts and plans bombarding her all at once…she felt like she was ready to snap. Instead she put up her uncaring façade once more. "Go ahead tell him. And while you're at it…you can tell my daughter it's your fault."

"What!?"

Azula picked up one of her swords, a clump of money, the nearest article of clothing she could find, and walked out the door slamming it shut as hard as she could. All the while telling herself that running away from this was for the best. They wouldn't want her around once the truth was out anyways.

She furiously swatted away the tears that stung her eyes.

"Daddy?" The little girl wore an expression filled with so much shock and confusion it practically tore Zuko's heart in two. "Where did mommy go?"

Cheng didn't speak.

P'Li began to quiver. "Daddy, when is mommy going to come home. I need my bedtime story."

Cheng pulled the girl into a tight hug and cradled her as she began to wail.

Zuko had been pretty angry in his life. But he honestly couldn't say that he'd ever been this pissed off. He was mad at Azula for lying again; mad at her for not being helpful, mad at her for still having a good life even after losing everything…and above all mad at her for so selfishly leaving her daughter behind.

But even more so He was again, mad at himself. It was his fault. He let his temper get the best of him. What place did he have to share Azula's secrets. Zuko had every intention of doing good…of finding his sister, making amends, and starting over…all as they took down a new evil. All he managed to do was piss her off even more and ruin a perfectly happy family.

Now the girl would be without a mother just like he was. Because of a cruel Fire Lord…just like…

How the hell did this happen?


	4. Chapter 4

Zuko stood up, reading himself to get blasted with a ray of fire for chasing after his sister. A hand found its way on to her shoulder.

"Don't worry. She'll be back." Cheng assured him.

Zuko opened his mouth to protest.

"Trust me; she does the every time she gets mad. She either comes back within the hour or within a day or two. Just leave her be."

"I don't think you understand, I…I was going to banish her. And she said…I don't think she's coming back."

"I know her. I know Sooyoung."

"You know Sooyoung, you don't know…" Zuko held his tongue. "I'll just let her tell you when she comes back." If she comes back. He added to himself.

"She will come back. As much as Soo would like to run off, she knows she can't. Not when we're about to have another kid." Cheng pointed out.

He had a valid point. But Zuko wouldn't put it past his sister to be crazy enough to try. "I really messed up this time." He frowned. "I just wanted her to tell you the truth. She wasn't ready to, I got mad and then…"

"You said something you shouldn't have. I get it, don't worry about it." Cheng shrugged. "If it makes you feel better I'll go talk to her."

"You know where she is?"

"I knew a few places she likes to go." Cheng replied. "Like I said, she always did that before P'Li was born…this is actually her first time doing it since. But I can imagine she'd still go to the same place. Just do me a favor and tuck P'Li in for me."

"I'm probably going to have to give that task to Katara; she's better with kids then I am."

Cheng laughed. "Just make sure she gets to bed, she gets cranky when she doesn't get enough sleep." And with that he was out the door.

Zuko carried P'Li up the stairs. The minute he reached floor two Sokka was giving him an earful. "What did you do to Soo!? How could you yell at Soo? Why would you even yell at Soo!?"

Katara swatted him on the head. "What he means is, what was all that yelling about?"

"I'll explain everything when P'Li is tucked in." Zuko answred.

Katara led him to the child's room where they lie the girl down and pulled the covers up to her shoulder. After which, they sang the girl to sleep.

"Alright Zuko. So what's going on?" Aang asked.

"I found out that Sooyoung is my sister."

"What? Oh no. No, no, no." Sokka frowned. "How are you going to tell Azula that she has another sister!?"

"Sokka…" Katara said through clenched teeth. "Sooyoung is Azula."

"Oh. Oh! Are…are you telling me that I was…"

"Obsessing over Azula? Yes, Sokka, that's exactly what Zuko was saying."

"This is terrible, we have to save the children!" Sokka yelled.

"Sokka keep it down. The child you just mentioned is trying to sleep." Katara hushed him.

"Terrible? I think it's sweet." Aang smiled. "I knew she wasn't going to come after us again."

"Yeah, I hope I didn't ruin that." Zuko muttered.

"What would make her want to leave this lovely family to come after us again?" Aang asked.

"The fact that I almost ruined the 'lovely' family." Zuko frowned.

"Yes, but how?" Katara asked.

"Well for starts, she was right, just being here could have ruined it for her. And then when I went to ask her to join us she said no because she didn't want to leave her Cheng and P'Li. I just got mad, I didn't even consider that she said no because she didn't want to leave her family. We got into a fight..."

"Big surprise." Sokka cut in.

"And I. I told Cheng that Azula was lying to him. I told him that she wasn't really Sooyoung."

"But you didn't tell him that Azula was…Azula? Did you?" Aang asked.

"No." He paused. "I told Azula to tell him. And then she just left."

"There's more to it than that isn't there?" Katara asked.

Zuko thought about the whole banishing thing. "Well, yes…"

Azula lie on her back gazing at the stars. Her mind was rather numb. She couldn't bring herself to think of anything at all. So she just lie there, staring.

The night was quiet, the breeze still soft and steady. She listened to the waves lapping up on shore. The sand tickling her back.

Azula yawned. Suddenly exhausted she decided that she'd just sleep there on the beach. She didn't feel like walking to a hotel and the weather seemed nice enough. She folded the articles of clothing she'd bought along with her and put them under her head.

She'd just barely shut her eyes when she heard footsteps approaching. Her hand instinctively reaching for the sword. She wasn't threatened enough to blow her cover by bending.

"Trust me, you're not going to need that." Cheng wrapped his hand around her wrist. At his touch she let the weapon fall back to the sand. "The Fire Lord was…distraught by your sudden departure."

"The Fire Lord is distraught by everything I do…" Azula rolled her eyes.

"What history do you have with the Fire Lord?"

Azula remained silent. She shifted her weight from one arm to the other.

"Soo, what was that fight about? What 'lies' was he talking about?"

"You mean he didn't run his mouth off yet?"

"No. He said he wanted you to tell me whatever it is that you're…hiding." Cheng paused. "I guess I'm in no hurry to find out. You can tell me whatever it is whenever you're ready. I just want to know why you're hiding something from me at all."

Because you wouldn't love me. That was the first thing that came to mind. Azula chose to vocalize the second biggest reason. "Because it's safer for all of us that way."

"And…" Cheng prompted.

"And what? That's it." Azula shrugged.

They were silent for a while after that. What else was there to say. Cheng wasn't one to pry. Instead the man slung his arm over Azula's shoulder and just stared out at the water.

Azula's expression was rather stern as she mulled her options over. Despite it all she was feeling rather contempt and at ease that night. No better time than when you're feeling calm to try to talk touchy subjects over. But why ruin a fine night?

Azula drew in a deep breath and moved out of Cheng's embrace.

His eyes fell upon her. "What are you…"

Azula opened her palm and let a tiny blue flame dance across it. She kept her eyes on the fire, averted from Cheng's gaze.

"Blue fire…" It was a spoken in a near whisper.

Azula let the flame die out leaving behind a thin trail of smoke.

"You're name really isn't Sooyoung is it?"

"What gave you the first clue? The blue fire or my brother flailing his arms screaming 'her name isn't even Sooyoung!'" Azula took a handful of sand and let it slide out of her palm. Watching as it eased its way back to its place of origin.

"Why else didn't you tell me?" Cheng asked.

"Because it was easier." Azula admitted. "Easier to start over when no one knows who you are but you. Easier than trying to convince everyone that you've changed…easier to forget…" She kept her eyes fixed on the waves. "And it was so easy to do too. Everyone thought I'd died or something so they had no reason to suspect anything." A sudden wave of anger hit Azula. "He wasn't supposed to come looking for me! He wasn't supposed to care!"

"Well he did. And—if I'm interpreting this all correctly—he's your brother. Of course he cares." Cheng stated.

"No. He just wanted to use me. And when I didn't go with him…" Her voice cracked. "He had to open his mouth and ruin everything." Her nails dug into the sand.

"He didn't ruin anything. I'm still here, and I still want you to come home. I still love you."

"You love Soo. Not Azula." Another tear managed to escape.

"Same person." Cheng helped Azula to her feet. He handed Azula her belongings.

"Your wife is a lunatic. Your father in law is in prison." Azula blurted out. "And your brother in law is a pain in the ass." She rubbed at her eye. "A crown stealing pain in the ass."

Cheng laughed. "At least you have someone you can complain to now. Though I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to complain about the in laws…"

"Well good thing we have a long walk home because I have a lot to complain about. And all of it happened like five years ago."


	5. Chapter 5

Azula was honestly exhausted. She should not have run off like that, and was in the middle of mentally scolding herself. The whole thing was completely straining.

Even with Cheng's help, the amount of stress she'd put on her body that night was overwhelming. She was just so used to bring able to do whatever she pleased, and with little effort.

By the time the pair reached home, Azula ached all over. Particularly in the lower back region.

She thought about complaining to Cheng about it, but she figured that she'd already given him enough of an earful. So instead, with a wince, she eased herself down onto the nearest sofa—in a laying position and stared at the ceiling.

Cheng re-entered the room with a steaming cup of tea. He set it on the coffee table next to her.

She muttered a thank you and rolled onto her side. But that wasn't very comfy either so she ended up on her back again shortly after.

Cheng found a seat on the end of the sofa. He placed one hand on her belly and with the other he took her hand. "You alright?"

"Yeah. Fine." Azula replied. It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't the truth either.

"You going to talk to your brother?"

"Perhaps."

"He was worried you know." Cheng pointed out.

"Good for him."

"Do you want to get to bed?"

"I'm not walking all the way up the stairs." Azula declared.

"I'll bring our blankets down here then." Cheng decided. He kissed her forehead and headed for the stairs.

"See if P'Li is sleeping. If she's still up she can come down here with us."

Cheng nodded.

Azula sat herself up and took a sip from the cup of tea. She then returned it to its place on the coffee table and lie back down, hands rubbing in small, soothing circles around her tummy.

Cheng returned to Azula's side. "She was asleep."

Azula nodded.

"But your brother isn't…"

"I'll talk to him tomorrow." Azula said with a dismissive wave.

"Please, Azula, talk to me now." Zuko appeared on the stairwell.

"I'm not going with you Zu-Zu." Azula said without consideration.

"We don't have to talk about that yet." Zuko sat down.

"Then what are we going to talk about?"

"I don't know. Normal things. How is your family life? How did you meet them? Why'd you name her P'Li?" Zuko posed a few questions. "I shouldn't have just went ahead asking for favors. I really didn't even ask how you've been."

"I've been wonderful Zu-Zu. As I said, things a great here, not much happens, but I like it that way. So many things used to happen all at once, this is refreshing." Azula sat herself up again.

"I told him a little bit about how I met you." Cheng pointed out.

"So I've realized."

"Well why don't you tell the rest of the story? I'd like to hear it—I'm sure it's a lot more fascinating than Fire Nation political affairs." Zuko laughed.

"It is." Azula answered with a self-satisfied smirk.

"Well then, let's hear it." Zuko prompted. "Beginning to end."

_It was nearly sun up. She'd been up all night. She could still hear Zuko calling out to her, begging her to come back, claiming he wanted to help her._

_She didn't want help. Epically not from him. This was his fault. And so she took off into an all-out sprint. Azula didn't know where she was going or why. She just wanted to leave. Perhaps to outrun her own mind._

_It was a pathetic attempt really. Azula couldn't possibly run away from herself. But she hoped to God that she'd run into a spirit of some sort that could take away the pain…that the Forgetful Valley would live up to its name and take away everything that'd happened to her since the comet._

_She'd hoped for too much._

_She'd instead, hit a dead end._

_It was foolish on her behalf._

_A move so impulsive that Azula had sealed her own fate. Even if she could find her way out of the Valley, she'd have no food nor money to buy it. She didn't even consider that when she'd run off._

_So she kept moving forward. At least she could find food in the jungle. At least she could find water…_

_Azula kept running until day became night again. By which time, she'd collapsed._

_It was a cold night, and she had no means of sheltering herself. So she simply curled herself into a ball and shivered._

_Shivered and sobbed bitterly to herself, feeling as though she couldn't do much more. No amount of fire could fix the mess she'd gotten into, she couldn't burn her way out of this one and there was no one to control or yell at but herself._

_And she couldn't even manage to control herself, much less other people._

_After a certain point she'd decided to stop sulking, at least long enough to give herself some warmth. The fire she'd bent for herself wasn't much heat, but it was something. It would have to do._

_Azula had awoken several times that night. Mostly because she'd thought she heard something; in which case she bolted upright, ready to blast whatever it was with fire. More than half the time it was all in her head._

_And her head had a way of obscuring things. So much so that she had to dim the fire down so the shadows would cast in such an eerie way. So much so that even the wind rustling the leaves was a bad omen or an evil spirit in the manifestation._

_And so Azula gave up on trying to sleep. She sat there huddled up against a tree, hugging her knees closely to her body._

_It didn't take very long for the hunger to set in. Azula had nothing other to do than focus on the dull ache. She hadn't eaten the morning before, she was too preoccupied. She regretted it with every fiber of her being at that moment._

_She longed to go find something to eat but she'd have to wait until morning. She may have been crazed enough to dash into the jungle, but she wasn't dumb enough to explore it at night._

_Azula was about to go back on that one. She had stood herself up—flame in hand to light the way—when a flash of light hissed by. It was followed by another and another._

_Her head was spinning as fast as the spirits._

_She closed her eyes and told herself that it was all in her head. She tried so hard to believe herself. But she couldn't do it. She couldn't fool herself. Her hallucinations had a very different feeling from this._

_The spirits circled about for a few more minutes. Lingering around Azula. Observing the invasive woman. This was_ _**their** _ _home and Azula intruded in._

_That first night—the first of many—was the hardest. After a week or so she'd grown used to the sounds and the shadows. They were no longer a threat._

_Nor were the spirits, she knew they were there, but she grew used to their presence… Just like she'd grown use to the hunger pains._

_The spirits almost seemed accepting of her now._

_One of them had even led her to a small creek, by which grew an abundance of fruit._

_It was there that she'd built herself a makeshift shelter._

_After another week, Azula had worked up the nerves to explore the jungle deeper; she'd followed the creek eastbound. About a half a mile down, the creek came to a stop near the mouth of a cave._

_The opening was narrow, Azula had to drop to her knees to get in, but she did it nonetheless. Upon crawling through it was rather roomy. Azula could stand with ease—though she could still reach up and touch the ceiling without much effort._

_It would do fine._

_Though she'd have to do some walking whenever she wanted food._

_After a while, Azula had lost track of the days completely. They all just seemed to blend together. Day and night nearly became one in the same. Slowly it all seemed to fade away. Time had no meaning. Nor did memories._

_She soon cast them aside. Words were also rather meaningless, with no one to talk to. So they were also pushed aside to make room for new skills._

_It just happened so slowly Azula didn't even realize it._

_Feral._


	6. Chapter 6

_t was a stormy night. Each drop colder than the next._

_The former princess huddled herself against the wall of_ _**her** _ _cave…her home. Azula had tried to make herself a fire; she'd lit it up at least thrice only to have the wind smother it once more. So she'd given up and simply sat there listening to the rain thrash against the side of the cave._

_Aside from the cold Azula enjoyed the storms. They were noise in the overpowering silence. On some days—if the rain was too chilling—she'd exit her cave and talk to the drops as they fell or respond to the thunder as if it were actually talking to her in some foreign tongue._

_But on nights like these, she'd simply sit within the cave and watch the lighting spark the skyline. Azula was particularly fond of the lighting. It was familiar. It was empowering._

_And on most stormy nights, she'd go out and bend it._

_The one thing that attached her to her civil self…or what was left of it._

_After a while Azula couldn't resist any longer. She was tired of sitting around, so she got up to go bend the lightning which coaxed so loudly to her. She readied herself as a bolt came her way. She drew it towards herself, letting the sparks dance dangerously close to her body. Seconds felt like exhilarating minutes as the electricity pulsed through her, passing by in slow motion. She then released it back into the sky when the power-induced euphoria faded._

_And like any euphoria…there came a crash, a dysphoria._

_For Azula it was rather unexpected. Until that moment she'd never been harmed by one of the storms._

_Just after her moment of short-lived glory, the storm intensified. The rain falling so thick and dense that it bought a sort of soreness to her skin._

_Azula headed back for the safety of her cave, the wind whistling viciously in her ear creating for a tremendous and annoying sound. Between the wind and the rain, Azula could barely hear herself think…had she any thoughts._

_She could barely keep herself upright against the wind, much less actually make any forward progress. The trees weren't doing much better either._

_If those two elements alone didn't do her any distress, it was the thunder. It was all too loud, louder than usual. And it always set Azula off._

_A childhood fear._

_The princess was fine with thunder when it was the aftermath of her stellar bending. And she could tolerate it when it wasn't ground-shakingly loud._

_This however was absolutely terrifying with no human-made noise to muffle the true volume or buildings to absorbed the sound waves. The sort of openness of the forest only perked the sound up as it echoed off the trees._

_Cupping her hands over her ears—muscles straining at the absurd amount of effort she was putting into the task—she broke into an all-out run._

_Naturally she found a large pile of debris—mostly large rocks and fallen trees—blocking the entrance._

_She let out a rather loud cry—one that was consumed by storm._

_Azula had no shelter now. Her stomach began twisting into knots. She lurched forward into another messy sprint._

_Maybe she could outrun it. Outrun the noise. Outrun the storm…_

_Cheng busied himself with his nightly chores. The young man was doing his best to prepare his parents for the day he'd move out. Such preparations included digging out a well closer to the small house so that they—in old age—would not have to venture out far to get water._

_Another task was to finish cleaning out the old tool shed. This task was-self assigned._

_This was the task he'd get working on…the well would have to wait until morning. He'd be able to see it better then anyways._

_He was working in the shed, filling up makeshift boxes with junk he'd sell at the market, when it started to storm. The rain was relentless and the wind merciless against the wooden walls._

_He could practically feel the small structure shaking as the wind whistled between the cracks and the rain leaked through the roof._

_Cheng ignored it and continued with his work. He had a fair amount to go before he'd be ready to journey to the market and he was determined to knock this one off his to do list._

_It was minutes in when the boy's mother had his father call for him. The man's voice boomed over the thunder shouting warnings of the severity of the storm. Insisting that he drop what he was doing and come inside now._

_He feigned an inability to hear._

_"Don't be a fool, boy!" His father called out. "Get in the house 'fore the shed takes off on ya!"_

_Cheng considered keeping up the act and pressing on with the task, but his father's tone had him thinking second thoughts. Reluctantly he cast the box aside and headed for his house. Easier said than done; the house was actually a fair deal of space away from the shed._

_His family certainly wasn't poor to say the least. They owned a fair deal of property._

_Cheng struggled against the wind. He considered calling out for some assistance from his father—but his pride held him back. He was 18. What kind of man cries to his father at any sign of conflict. He'd push through._

_Out of the corner of his eye Cheng saw the shed pry from its fixture._

_At this point Cheng was ready to drop his man-pride and start shrieking for his dad. He had opened his mouth when something…one else caught his attention._

_There was a girl running near the jungle's edge. She was a slim girl in both height and weight. Despite her small build, she seemed to be faring better against the storm than he. Even so, she was radiating fear. She didn't think she was going to make it._

_This gave Cheng a sort of boost. He started in her direction, determined to catch up with her before she decided that she wasn't welcomed on the property._

_When he finally reached the girl, her eyes went wide—and with a wild gleam. She made motion to dart the other way. But Cheng pulled her closer to him. "Where are you going? It's insane out here, you should come inside with me."_

_She tried to shove out of his grasp, but he held firmly. He didn't quite understand her resistance. "Please, let me help you."_

_She didn't speak._

_Not even a sound._

_Just heavy, erratic breathing._

_She finally stopped struggling and let him lead her inside._

_"Who is that?" Cheng's mother asked as the two—dripping wet—entered the foyer._

_"I don't know, she just kind of came out of the jungle." Cheng answered as he hugged her close to him. She was shivering, he could feel her heartbeat—just as fast as her breathing._

_"Who are you?" Him mother looked to the girl. "Are you alright?"_

_And still she didn't speak._

_Cheng's mother turned to his father. "Heavens…the girl must be freezing. Thomas, get the girl something to eat...and a blanket or two, and something dry and without tares to wear." She paused. "And sit her by the fire so she can warm up."_

_Thomas nodded. "I guess we're all lucky that you chose tonight to be stubborn as a donkey-weasel. Now get yerself by the fire too."_

_Cheng mirrored his father's nod and lead the girl to the fireplace._

_"What were you doing out there?" Cheng tried again once they were situated on the floor; him in a crisscross position and her in his lap leaning against his shoulder._

_Again, she had no answer for him. No answer but soft muffled tears. He hugged her tighter, a foreign need to protect her kicking in. He pushed aside the disheveled bangs clinging to her head, all the while wondering to himself what in God's name had happened to her. "It'll be alright. You have us now."_


	7. Chapter 7

_Three days after finding her in the storm the girl showed no signs of improvement. She didn't even give the family her name._

_Cheng and his parents alike had hoped that her silence was just the essence of shock from being out in the storm—and that she'd be talking more the following day._

_The roots of her problems seemed to be much deeper than that._

_It was on the fourth day when it hit hard that something was very…off about the girl. She had a habit of taking common house hold objects with a sense of fascination—always examining them as if to find…or recall their use._

_Cheng could remember one instance of this very clearly. It was a fork. Such a simple piece of metal. She stared at it—set before her on the kitchen table—for at least 10 minutes…all the while her food growing cold. She twirled it in between her fingers, jabbed at the food a little but not quite hard enough for the food to stick. Eventually she put the piece of silverware down and began eating with her hands._

_His mother was quick to 'correct this behavior'. She was gentle in the task, lightly gripping the girl's wrist and taking her through the motion of using a fork. It was this that had Cheng deciding that she was examining the objects in order to recall them as she picked up on the motion quickly._

_She had another peculiar habit too. The girl would often sleep on the floor even when there was a bed available. And when told that she shouldn't sleep on the floor, she'd get cozy on the sofa._

_She also had her quirks when it came to storms. At the faintest sound of thunder she'd squat herself in a corner and cover her ears. Depending on how wild the storm she would tremble._

_Cheng supposed that made sense considering the circumstances._

_One of her most odd habits was swatting the family's picture of Firelord Zuko to the floor. This was a habit that had his mother scolding the girl and his father chuckling in the distance._

_Of course the girl had more habits, but among them all, those stuck out the most._

_While strange, unpredictable, and rather uncivilized, she had this sort of elegance to her. It came in the way she carried herself; posture and stance, the way she walked. Despite it all she walked with her head carried high and with a regal sway of her hips._

_And in mastering things like the fork—once she had it down, she carried out the task with a flowing type of grace. Not a crumb left on the table. Or when sipping tea, the way she positioned her fingers on the handle and the way she'd daintily move the cup to her lips._

_The kind of mannerisms you'd expect from an upper class woman._

_The girl was a walking contradiction; a blend of high class society and what creatures resided in the jungle._

_This was also true in a physical sense; her disheveled, long, dark hair a direct contrast to her sharp elegant facial structure. The light film of dirt on her skin a foil to her soft amber eyes._

_After Cheng's mother had taken a brush through her hair—taking the time to even her bangs—and taught her how to bathe herself, the girl was the picture of classy. Particularly after his mother let her borrow some makeup._

_Much like with the fork, her application was sloppy at first but quickly became second nature._

_The only thing that she seemed to have trouble with at that point was speech. Speech was something he'd work with her on most every night—re-teaching her words, hoping one would lead to the next in her mind. Cheng found that the problem didn't lie in not having a vast vocabulary to work with, but in other things. One of which being a lack of memory on sentence structure, and even more so her struggle to recall how to shape and pronounce with her lips, the words that she seemed to know so well._

_From this Cheng came to guess that she'd once been of the upper class (or at least a very smart middle class girl) and had somehow gotten herself stuck in the jungle. And based on the bitter underuse of her voice…had been out in that jungle alone for way too long._

_It had taken him a little over three months to get her to even start talking—and when she did her voice seemed to come out raw and hoarse for going unused for so long._

_And in the following four months her ability to speak seemed to have improved drastically. Once he had her shaping and pronouncing words, she was all set._

_It was on, about, month four that he had asked for her name again. She said it was Soo. And eventually she added Young. On the sixth month—when her speech was nearly perfected—he asked her, again how she'd gotten lost in the jungle. To which she simply stated that she did not remember._

_The last few months of that year were spent saying goodbye to his parents and making the final preparations before moving out to start his own life…_

_A right glittering on her finger._

_Their wedding night was the last Cheng saw of his parents before they were claimed by the hands of time. It was a cheerful night. There were no guests from Azula's side…she really didn't have anyone to invite. Cheng however had his family (both near and distant) as well as some old high school buddies._

_They had their wedding on a beach—of course it ended up raining. It mattered not, it was a smoldering hot day, they actually kind of needed the rain._

_Azula had a favorite part; after the vows were said they had thrown an after party. It started and dusk and went through the night. It was just past sundown and their performer was late. So Azula decided to entertain everyone by tossing the groom into the water. He surfaced with his very own collection of starfish and seaweed—later to be hung over the mantle._

Azula looked up at Zuko. And then she turned her glance to Cheng and told him of her search for Ursa and what lead her to run into the Forgetful Valley. "Anything else either of you want to know?"

"I think we're good." Cheng replied.

Zuko nodded. He then added a quick. "Actually, I would like to know why you choose the name Sooyoung?"

"Soo was short and easy to pronounce." Azula replied. "Pretty sure the first actual word I had said for Cheng was 'young'." She paused. "No, I don't remember why the first word I said to him was young."

Azula lie her head back on the armrest and pulled the blanket up to her chin. "Anything else?"

"I don't think so." The two answered.

"Good. Because I plan on sleeping tonight." She rolled on to her side—facing opposite Zuko and Cheng.

"Good night Azula. We'll talk some more in the morning?"

Azula murmured something that sounded like a sure whatever, and then added a "do blow out the candles for me on your way up."


	8. Chapter 8

Azula was still asleep next to Cheng when Zuko lead the others to the lower floor. He couldn't say for certain whether or not Cheng was sleeping too or if he was simply lying awake waiting for Azula to do the same.

Zuko knew it wouldn't be long before his sister woke up when P'Li bounced down the stairs. She skipped right on over to the sofa and with her tiny hands, shoved Cheng to the floor so she could take his place. Naturally the plan had backfired when Cheng dragged Azula down with him. She landed face up on top of the man and woke with a startled cry.

"Daddy did it!" P'Li shouted right away.

Azula grumbled, rubbed her head, and slowly (using the couch as a crutch) stood back up.

"You alright?" Cheng asked.

Azula sat back down. "Fine."

P'Li crept back over and flopped down on the couch, leaning against her mother. Azula ran a hand over the child's hair and pulled her closer.

"What do you want to eat?" Cheng asked.

"Doesn't matter." Azula shrugged.

"Ice cream." P'Li chirped.

"Not for breakfast." Azula murmured in the girl's ear.

"I'll figure something out." Cheng retreated into the kitchen.

At this point, P'Li was holding Azula's hand, attempting to pull her off the sofa and into the kitchen too. Azula picked the restless child up and cradled her in her arms.

"Mind if I sit down?" Zuko asked.

"Why do you need to ask?"

"It is your house…"

Azula sighed. "You always make something out of nothing don't you? If you want to sit, sit. If you want to stand, stand."

"You look kind of funny." P'Li pointed at Zuko's scar.

Azula didn't bother suppressing the slight smirk.

"She's defiantly your daughter." Katara nodded from the corner.

"Indeed." Azula stated with much pride. "I taught her well." The smirk widened.

"I'm sorry about last night." Zuko "I shouldn't have just come here and…"

"Don't be so dramatic Zu-Zu." Azula gave a dismissive gesture.

P'Li looked up at Zuko and shouted Zu-Zu thrice. His cheeks darkened a hue or two. It was bad enough that Azula still called him that…but her daughter too!?

"I have raised you well, haven't I?" Azula drawled.

P'Li didn't quite understand so she just nodded and gave an 'mmhm.'

"Our mother is worried about you." Zuko pointed out.

Azula sighed. "If she really cares, she can come for a visit. Bring her along next time you stop by…if there is a next time."

"Of course there will be a next time." Aang answered for Zuko.

"At least the Avatar seems to be egger to visit me."

"I can bring Mai and Ty-Lee along too."

"Or you can leave them behind." Azula suggested.

"I think Ty-Lee might like P'Li." Sokka pointed out.

Azula thought for a minute. "Perhaps. P'Li could use a baby sitter." She paused. "Cheng and I haven't gone out for dinner…alone in a while."

"Hey!" P'Li yelled.

Azula smiled at the girl. "You didn't even like the restaurant anyways."

"Did too." She pouted.

There came a slight pounding on the door. Azula frowned. "We don't usually get company. Much less this early in the morning."

"I'll get it." Toph and Cheng shouted at once. After a brief back and forth conversation it was decided that Toph was closer, so she'd take the task on.

She hadn't even reached the door before it loomed to the floor—held up just by a hinge or two.

Azula stood abruptly set on spinning a slur of angry words. She looked from the intruder to Zuko. "Who are they?"

"The White Discord…" Zuko answered with much reluctance.

"They tracked us all the way over here?" Aang stepped forward. Sokka stood next to him, mouth ajar.

"You're going to kick my ass for this aren't you?" Zuko asked.

"You bet." Azula said through clenched teeth. She bent down so that she was level with P'Li. Her voice lowered to a sweet and soothing hush, "why do you go play with the jungle spirits? Mommy needs to…talk to these men. I'll get you when we're finished."

P'Li nodded. Azula gave her a light pat on the head. "Alright, don't wander too far, but don't stay too close either..."

Azula gave a quick glance over her shoulder. In this time it appeared that the men had taken out Toph and the water tribe siblings and were quickly advancing on her brother.

"See ya later mama." P'Li smiled.

"Yeah…later." Azula gave a half smile. She kissed the girl on the cheek. "I love you…"

P'Li nodded. Azula watched the little girl flounce out the door. She felt something cold…metallic graze her neck. She turned slowly, drawing out a thin trail of lightning as she did so. She let it direct it's self at the metal sword that came so close to leaving her dead.

It's owner let out a yelp before falling to the floor.

"So this is why we needed her help." Sokka called from in the corner—trapped within a wall of rock.

The earthbender whom had bested him still working on Zuko.

"Azula you have to leave." Zuko shouted.

"I can't." Azula declared. "Cheng can't fight these guys, he's a wimp."

"Can't he bend?" Sokka asked.

"Nope. He's just like you…born in the Water Tribe, can't bend…a wimp."

"Thank you dear." Cheng retorted as his dagger embedded itself in one of the attacker's arms.

"Lucky shot." Said the man as he pulled it out and flung it back. The dagger had barely left his hand when he drew out a stream of water and pinned Cheng in place. Azula sent a wave of fire to knock the dagger out of position.

"I got him." The earthbender remarked. Zuko lie on the ground in a similar state to Sokka.

A tall woman with snowy colored hair slide her way into the room. "Great, where's the Avatar?"

"I'm over here." Aang replied adding a whirl of air for emphasis. The woman remained on her feet.

"You're going to have to do a bit better than that aren't you?" She seemed to glide closer to Aang. She now stood practically nose to nose with him. "You're just beaming with power aren't you." She murmured slowly. "It will suit me nicely as I take the throne in the spirit world."

"There is no throne in the Spirit world!" Aang hollered.

"There will be shortly. All I have to do is transfer your power…your soul, to yours truly."

"And you people said I was crazy." Azula mumbled to herself. She ignited a handful of fire.

"Don't you dare." The other woman growled.

Azula ignored her.

"Azula get out of here!" Zuko hollered.

Azula brushed him off with a "don't tell me what to do Zu-Zu." She then paused and muttered about he was the one who wanted her to do this in the first place.

"You're going to get yourself killed." He tried again. "You're going to get your baby killed."

Azula sent the fire at the half-sprit woman. "As if they're going to just let me leave."

The woman smirked and stepped out of the way. "She's right you know. I would have killed her the minute she left the door. At least she has a chance now."

Azula scowled and sent another wave of fire. It became rather rhythmic. Azula would attack and her opposer would dance around the fire. And of course Azula would take special care to extinguish the flame before it could claim her home.

Aang had busied himself with keeping the earthbender and the waterbender from interrupting.

The woman yawned. "I am tired of this game." She came to a dead halt and then sent a spiral of punches in Azula's direction. The Princess hadn't seen anyone move that quickly since Ty-Lee. Her fist first met Azula's left arm (she could already feel it bruising) and then her other arm.

She shielded her face as another blow met her left arm again. It was now throbbing and screaming for a break.

It was now a game of sheer defense, Azula couldn't seem to find time—or room—for that matter to make any counter attack.

Zuko made an attempt to break from his rocky entrapment. He however only succeeded in burning himself.

Azula deflected a cheap shot aimed at her stomach. She was growing dizzy and tired—very much so. It had her wondering how she'd even made it this long. She felt sick. Out of breath, lungs burning.

It only took a second really—a second Azula utilized for catching her breath—for the woman to land another cheap shot. This one actually hitting it's mark in one way or another. The half-spirit woman had caught Azula's ankle with the hook of her own and sent the Princess to the floor.

Face first.

Azula gave a sharp cry and rolled onto her side clutching her stomach. The pain—physical and mental was unbearable.

She should have listened. She should have ran. She killed her baby…she killed her own baby…

She may as well have at least.

Her thoughts then turned to Zuko. It was his fault. If he didn't have the audacity to come to her house and let them follow him, then she wouldn't have had any need to flee in the first place. Her need to cause her brother harm, resurfacing.

Azula's agonized cries and fists pounding violently on the floor proved sufficient enough for the woman, as she now slinked past and came back nose to nose with Aang.

It was a simple twirling motion—done with only her pinky—and Aang's soul took to exiting his body in a thin, transparent, shimmery trail. Misting along towards his attacker's pinky like Azula's lightning to the man's sword.

They'd lost. Aang knew he'd made a terrible mistake in coming to Azula. He just thought that Azula herself would have been the reason for it. He hadn't even considered that he'd be putting her at risk. And now everyone was paying for it.

He let his head dip…ready to take his punishment.

Whatever this woman had in store after his soul was lost to him…he had it coming.

The half-spirit woman gave a cruel grin.

The grin slipped as quickly as it had come.

With a wild half-shrike half-scream, Azula flung herself at the woman. Deciding, at this point that the woman wasn't even worth bending at, the Princess began savagely pounding the woman's face. Over and over came the fist-falls.

"Please." The half spirit woman whimpered. "Mercy."

Azula came to a stop, eyes going wide for a brief moment before continuing at a twice as vicious rate. How dare the woman kill her child-to-be and beg for mercy. How dare she…

Aang's hand caught Azula's wrist. "That's enough."

"It's not enough." Azula screamed, now resorting to kicking the woman.

"Azula please…" Cheng started.

"No!" She roared and tried wrenching her hands out of Aang's.

"Azula, for me…"

"The baby was yours too. You should be helping me." Azula hollered.

Cheng freed himself from the ice. The waterbender dared not refreeze it again. "The baby might not be dead…"

"How do you know?" She yelled, tears streaming down her cheeks. Her voice straining from between the screaming and the newly formed sobs. Azula attempted to kick the woman again. "I'll kill her! She deserves it! She deserves this!" She gave another incoherent scream before dropping to her knees. Cheng guiding her down and pulling her close.

Aang needed no verbal cues. He picked himself off the floor and got to work on both freeing the others (which didn't take much effort with the woman's lackeys scared shitless) and marshaling the intruders out.

"I'll go make sure P'Li is alright." Zuko decided. Cheng nodded.

He was alone with Azula now, trying to coax her back into a more sound state of mind. It wasn't going well, pretty much everything he said went in through one ear and out the other. If not that, was shot down by some enraged retort.

And so he closed his mouth and just sat there rocking Azula slightly in his arms, chancing a soothing circular motion on her belly. She didn't protest.

"I can help." Katara re-entered the house. "I still have some water left over from the Spirit Oasis…"

Azula glared at the waterbender—likely for interrupting a privet moment, and witnessing another breakdown—but let her draw near.

"Try to hold still." Katara requested softly. Mirroring the motions she used to heal Zuko after the agni kai, she drew the water over Azula's stomach and starting the healing process.

"It bought Aang back to life." Katara assured Azula.

Azula didn't offer a response. She, however, seemed to have calmed herself a great deal, mostly due in part to Katara's presence.

"Everything will work out. It always does." Cheng whispered to her.

Katara moved aside. "Alright, you should be fine now. Just take it easy okay."

Azula nodded and rolled onto her side again. Silence overcoming her again…lost in thoughts, most of them still pessimistic and despairing. She may have been born lucky…but that luck seemed to have been spent.

"When I said take it easy, I didn't mean you had to stay on the floor."

"I know." Azula replied, the usual power in her voice gone.

Cheng carried her up the stairs and to her room. Calling for Katara to tell Zuko and P'Li where they had gone.

The child was up the stairs only moments after. She hopped on the bed. "Mommy, why are you sad?"

"I just am." Azula frowned.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Azula lied. P'Li didn't need to know that she may not have a new sibling after all. Not just yet.

P'Li lie down and snuggled close to Azula, putting her pointer on her mother's nose. And in the most authoritive voice she could muster stated, "no. You're not 'loud to be sad."

Azula managed a faint smile. "If you say so…" But her heart was still heavy.

The following months were a roller coaster. There were some happy moment sprinkled in, but most of the time Azula felt anxious and on edge. She didn't like waiting, epically not for this.

Around the last month of her pregnancy, Zuko insisted that she and Cheng come back to the palace as he had a supposedly better medical team. P'Li was thrilled at the thought of spending a few nights in the palace.

Azula was feeling a bit sick to her stomach at the thought of seeing her mother again. And at the thought of seeing Mai and Ty-Lee again.

She only briefly vocalized these…concerns to Cheng. As usual he was rather chipper and optimistic claiming that they probably missed her.

The first few moments were rather awkward but then Ty-Lee started in on a 'remember when we did this' story and everything seemed to take a turn for the better. Sometimes P'Li would give a "I remember that too" and Azula would have to remind her that she wasn't even born when it had happened.

Such moments had eased some of Azula's stress, providing that much of a distraction.

Zuko would also take care to make Azula feel comfy. He had prepared her old room.

She had taken well to getting pampered again—she recognized a good handful of the servants. Su-Xing still wasn't too happy about getting banished, the resentment came through in the form of how roughly she ran the comb through Azula's hair.

Azula had forgotten how much she missed her old home.

Her reunion with her mother also went better than she expected. Ursa had given her a hug or two and Azula introduced her to Cheng and P'Li. P'Li was more than thrilled to meet grandma and began requesting to meet grandpa too.

Zuko quickly changed the subject on that one.

Only a night or two after that Azula had a second daughter.

The child was born without a struggle. And she was the most beautiful baby, although she more closely resembled Cheng in eye color and facial structure. She did share Azula's sharper features and dark hair.

It was a rather large shock though to find that she was born without arms. But she was alive. And she was perfect.


End file.
